AAP workers have “strong objection over one or two names”: Chotepur

A day after AAP announced first list of candidates for the 2017 Punjab Assembly polls, its state convener Sucha Singh Chhotepur today said party workers have “strong objection over one or two names”.

“There are one or two names on which workers have strong objections…interest of workers who have worked hard should be kept in mind. Their interests should not be ignored. I have talked on this issue with the party,” Chhotepur told PTI.

Chhotepur, however did not take the “names”. He rejected reports that he was “upset” over inclusion of some names the list and asserted there was no question of his resignation from the party and reports to this effect were incorrect.

He said he will raise the issue with Arvind Kejriwal when he comes back from vipassana’ meditation course on August 12.

“It is democracy and everybody has the right to talk within the party. I have not taken names of seats or of their seats. It is an internal matter (of the party),” he said, adding names of candidates on seven seats (out of 26 seats) have been withheld.

Yesterday, AAP released first list of 19 candidates, which included senior lawyer H S Phoolka and Himmat Singh Shergill.

“It is the right of the Political Affairs Committee (PAC) to announce candidates and everybody will agree on it. If the party says they can be changed then they will be changed,” he said.

“Whatever the PAC has decided is final. We can talk that workers’s interests should not be ignored,” Chhotepur said.

Asked why he was not present during the press conference yesterday when the list was announced, he said he was in Delhi for some personal work.

“I had informed Sanjay Singh (AAP leader) that I would not attend the press conference. It is not necessary that I should be attending all the press conferences,” Chhotepur said.

Former IFS officer H S Kingra, who is considered close to Chhotepur, has resigned from the party after he was denied ticket from Ferozepur Assembly seat. He even reportedly called AAP a party of “sycophants”.